Educator: "Children will not excel at learning other languages unless they are exposed to those languages at a very young age. Grace had a babysitter who spoke Spanish to her as a young child, so she will grow up to be fluent in Spanish."
Which of the following passages most closely parallels the flawed reasoning exhibited above?
A)Flowers cannot grow well unless they are watered at least three times a week. Grace's flowers did not grow well, so she must have forgotten to water them.
B)Flowers cannot grow well unless they are watered at least three times a week. Grace watered her flowers four times a week, so her flowers will grow well.
C)Flowers grow best when they are watered three or more times per week. Grace watered her flowers once per week, so her flowers will not grow well.
D)Flowers grow best when they are watered three or more times per week. Grace's flowers grow well, so she must water them at least three times per week.
E)Flowers will not grow unless they are watered at least three times each week. Grace always takes great care of her flowers, so they will grow well.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The passage that most closely parallels the flawed reasoning in the original passage is answer B. In the original passage, the educator falsely assumes that because an event is necessary for another event to occur, then the first event occurring is sufficient for the second to occur. In other words, if the requirement that Grace is exposed to Spanish has been met, then she will learn Spanish. Answer B follows the same logic. Watering the flowers three or more times each week only establishes one of the conditions necessary for the flowers to grow well; it does not guarantee that they will.

Educator: "Children Will Not Excel at Learning Other Languages Unless